DIY: Smooth lotion & lotion bars

This night was the first time in 4,5 months (not that I’m counting) that I’ve slept for 6 hours straight! And then again, after a quick feeding and a short “no, it’s not time to play and pull Mummy’s hair; it’s time to sleep”-discussion with Eva, I had 2 more hours of sleep. 8 hours in one night! I could get use to this.

Having gotten all of this wonderful sleep I felt kind of well-rested when I woke up this morning – or at least not as tired as usual. I therefore decided that I would make some more lotion. A few days back I made a small batch of fluffy lotion for Eva. It’s one of my favourite recipes as it gets that nice smooth texture that I associate with lotion. Benjamin has however been asking me for a few months now to make him a new batch of another lotion and today I finally did. I have no idea why I’ve kept postponing it, as it is not that difficult a recipe and I’ve had the ingredients lying around for ages. But apparently it took a good nights sleep to motivate me.

I used a recipe for luxurious homemade lotion from Wellness Mama. I had some difficulty with the measurements. I find it can be a bit tricky to use a a measuring cup, especially when it comes to the beeswax. Usually I prefer weighing things like that. I therefore decided to first measure it in a cup and then weigh it, so I would have the weight for next time around. Feeling on a roll I also decided to try and make some lotion bars. Again I used one of Wellness Mamas recipes as a starting point, but decided to remelt my lotion bars and add more beeswax as I found they melted too easily.

I forgot to take pictures of the ingredients and during the proces as Eva unexpectedly woke early from her nap. But here’s a photo of the finished results.

The result of todays efforts. Two small jars of lotion for Ben, three lotion bars for me and three small lotions bars which ban be used on Eva’s face and hands, as there’s no essential oils in them.

I’ve posted both recipes below as I ended up making them. Hope they can help others who prefers weighing things to measuring them in a cup.

DIY: Smooth lotion

Ben loves this lotion (and so do I). It’s really smooth, smells nice and works wonders. He keeps a jar of it at work to use on his hands after washing them. Which is a lot this time a year where everyone seems to be down with the flu.

How to

Mix all of the ingredients besides the essential oil(s) in a mason jar with a lid. Close the lid very lightly. You need the lid to avoid any water getting in the lotion. At the same time you’ll also need to stir the ingredients once in a while with a spoon, so it’s also important that you can easily remove the lid.

Place the jar in a small pan with a few centimeters (about 1 inch) of water and bring it to a boil at medium heat. The water just needs to be hot enough for the beeswax to melt.

Remember to stir the ingredients once in a while until they are melted and smooth. I just used a long spoon.

Remove from heat and add the essential oils. Mix well.

Pour into the jar you want to store it in and wait until it has harden. That’s it. You’re done. Enjoy your lotion.

Waiting for the lotions to harden. The yellow from the beeswax really stands out.

DIY: Lotions bars

I’ve never made lotion bars before but decided to give it a go. I’m not sure yet whether or not I prefer the bars or the more traditional lotion, but I’m definitely a fan!

Ingredients (3 small and 3 medium sized bars)

45 grams (1,6 ounces) shea butter

50 grams (1,8 ounces) coconut oil

30 (1,1 ounces) grams beeswax

Optional: 8 drops of essential oil (I used 3 drops lavender oil and 3 drops of tea tree oil as I only put some in the three bigger bars I made. I didn’t use any in the 3 smaller ones)

How to

The first four steps are the same as in the recipe above.

Mix all of the ingredients besides the essential oil(s) in a mason jar with a lid. Close the lid very lightly. You need the lid to avoid any water getting in the lotion. At the same time you’ll also need to stir the ingredients once in a while with a spoon, so it’s also important that you can easily remove the lid.

Place the jar in a small pan with a few centimeters (about 1 inch) of water and bring it to a boil at medium heat. The water just needs to be hot enough for the beeswax to melt.

Remember to stir the ingredients once in a while until they are melted and smooth. I just used a long spoon.

Remove from heat and add the essential oils. Mix well.

Pour into the molds that you would like the lotions bars to harden in. I used silicone muffin bars as suggested by Wellness Mama, and it worked great.

Remove them from the molds when they have harden completely. For easy removal, let the lotion bars cool in the fridge, before attempting to pop them out of the molds.

The lotion bars a few minutes after I poured the mixture into the molds. The small ones are already starting to harden.